Once upon an Edo night
by MissTeak
Summary: Edo, 1639. A courtesan from Yoshiwara pleasure quarters met a demon lord moments before she took her own life by jumping off Nihonbashi. Tokyo, 2009. Higurashi Kagome and Takahashi Sesshoumaru were visited by their entwined fates, once upon an Edo night.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own any of the Inuyasha characters. They belong to Takahashi Rumiko.

A/N: MissTeak's attempt at a melancholic, tragic yet beautiful story of intense love that spans centuries to see to it that a promise made in the previous lives was fulfilled. I hope you guys like this one; I was listening to a personal favorite Chinese song and my muse just came up with this story. Oh, and Sesshoumaru is human, not the demon lord, in the modern day context. Please let me know how you feel about this; reviews will be greatly appreciated!

_**Once upon an Edo night**_

Higurashi Kagome smiled discreetly as she moved to maneuver her shadow such that it was overlapped at where the hands were with Takahashi Sesshoumaru.

Looking at the shadows, it appeared as if they were holding hands, and that was sweet and adorable enough for the hopeless romantic in Kagome.

Sesshoumaru seemed not to notice either the shadows or the smile gracing the lips of the beautiful girl by his side. The night was warm, comfortably so, and he was content enough to simply enjoy the excellent companionship she provided as they strolled along the Nihonbashi. He wouldn't deny though, that it would be nice if he could hold her by the hand.

They were on their fourth, somewhat embarrassing, date after mutual friends Sango and Miroku tried to fix them up. While it was progressing very well, both parties seemed to have difficulty in taking the initiative to move their relationship to another level. It was like an open secret which both knew very well, but somehow, no one was making a move.

"The breeze is comfortable, isn't it, Takahashi-san?"

"Hmm." He nodded. "It is very relaxing indeed."

Kagome smiled and looked up at the handsome man by her side, before he happened to turn in her direction and catch her gaze directly. Locked in a gaze for what seemed to be a few very intimate seconds, Kagome hastily broke the eye contact, her expression flustered.

Feeling rather self-conscious all of a sudden, Sesshoumaru turned away as well, and both ended up standing side by side in silence, leaning against the ledge of the Nihonbashi and staring out into the inky waters of the river beneath. Overhead, the noises from the cars zooming on the highway were heard, and the lights from all directions threw shadows on their otherwise slightly blushing faces.

"Higurashi-san."

"Yes?"

They sounded tense, and Kagome braced herself. Was Sesshoumaru finally about to ask her to be his girlfriend?

"Do you…" He started and paused, while she subconsciously sucked in her breath and held it there.

_Here comes the question…_

"…umm…need to sit down somewhere?"

"Eh?" Kagome's eyes widened in disappointment, shock and confusion.

Sesshoumaru wanted to slap himself for his stupidity.

"I mean, you are wearing your heels, so…"

"It's fine." Kagome replied a little more curtly than she intended to. Couldn't he tell that she was waiting for him to say something about it?

"Oh."

"We might as well get going…the view here is not that spectacular."

Disappointment must have made her slightly grumpy and frustrated with the man beside her, and unbeknownst to her, it did not go unnoticed.

Turning on her heels, she took a step along the Nihonbashi, before her surroundings, urban and noisy, abruptly morphed in front of her eyes like another dimension. It happened so quickly; Kagome did not even have enough time to react to the change. The noise of the cars along the highway vanished instantly into thin air, and gone were the neon and fluorescent lights of the 21st century.

What was originally stone beneath her feet were transformed as if by magic, into wooden planks. The sounds of the river water lapping at the banks were not drowned out by the urban landscape here – it was audible, lulling and gentle. Crickets chirped, forming the orchestra of the night. The smells of summer lingered heavily in the slightly humid but fresh air.

Kagome blinked twice instinctively. She was not hallucinating. It was still the Nihonbashi, but…it did not look like the Nihonbashi she knew since young.

It looked like what she saw in history lessons from high school, from the ancient woodblock printings and early photographs. Except that the wooden bridge she was standing on was even newer, its wooden structure still retaining gloss.

…It was Nihonbashi, back in its earliest days.

"Takahashi-san?" She turned, and to her utmost relief, saw an equally confused Sesshoumaru standing close behind her. "Where…where are we?"

"It is the Nihonbashi. Back in time." His voice was low with disbelief.

Kagome nodded in agreement, feeling anxiety and fear claw at her insides. This was impossible. What was going on? Was this a sort of sick joke?

It sure didn't seem like one. If it didn't sound so ridiculous, she would say…they have gone back in time. Three hundred over years ago. At the very same spot where they were standing just a few moments ago in year 2009.

A laugh pierced the otherwise silent night air, but it was not one of joy. It was one of pain, self-mockery and pity.

"Stay behind me." Sesshoumaru whispered, while they turned to face the source of the beautiful and melancholic laugh.

Kagome gasped involuntarily, for what appeared in front of her eyes was herself.

An apparition of a lady, bearing uncanny resemblance to Kagome, was sitting precariously on the wooden ledge of the Nihonbashi, decked in fineries and an intricately designed and elaborately colored kimono. She appeared solid enough, but they could see slightly through her shadowy form. Her hairdo, filled with a multitude of exquisite hair ornaments, coupled with the signature obi tied in front of her waist, told Kagome what she was looking at. A pair of ridiculously high geta was left on the bridge, arranged neatly side by side.

She was looking at a Tayu, the highest ranking courtesan among the sleazy pleasure quarters, Yoshiwara, of Edo. Not just any Tayu, but a Tayu who looks exactly like her. Kagome stared at the enigmatic creature ahead of her, transfixed, lost in the impossibility of the entire situation. She could feel Sesshoumaru moving to stand in front of her protectively.

Despite the garish finery the Tayu was decked in, she did not look happy at all. In fact, her beautifully lined eyes – Kagome's eyes- could not hide the pain and melancholy she was feeling on the inside. She was smoking a tobacco pipe as she sat all alone, blowing the exhaled smoke sensuously and seductively into the summer night with her perfectly rouged lips.

She appeared to be terribly lonely; Kagome could feel it. The raw waves of pain were radiating off her.

But what was shocking was not just her loneliness, but rather, the red cord looped loosely around her wrist. It was tied in such a way that there was another loop to it.

It was characteristic of a suicide pact made between a man and a woman in Japanese and Chinese traditions. The red cord looped around their wrists was meant to bind them in death and into the afterlife beyond.

But where was the man? The Tayu was all alone.

"No…don't do it." Kagome whispered, loud enough for the Tayu to hear, but she did not respond. "Don't do this."

"Miss, listen to us!" Sesshoumaru called out. It was unsettling and unbelievable, but somehow, he knew they were looking at Kagome – the Kagome who lived three hundred over years ago.

The Tayu did not respond, and both of them knew she could not hear them at all.

They were caught somewhere between the creases of two time dimensions, playing helpless voyeurs to a tragic scene which, while unknown to them, would soon change their lives forever.

It was then when they heard a voice that sent chills down their spines.

"_Tayu no Higurashi of the Red Lantern House."_

The mesmerizingly beautiful Tayu smiled, a sad smile nonetheless, as she acknowledged the voice hidden in the shadows without turning around.

"_Lord Sesshoumaru of the Western Lands."_ Her voice was beautiful and haunting as his name and title rolled sensuously off her lips. _"What an honor…it is my good fortune indeed, to be able to see you before my impending death. Or are you going to ask me if I wished to spend a night in your sleeping chambers tonight?"_

The figure in the shadows stepped into the dim light cast by the pearly moon hanging above, and it was Sesshoumaru's turn to freeze as he looked at himself, clad in an ancient warrior's robes, complete with swords and an amour. His regal silver hair adopted a pearlescent glow in the night.

"_Why do you seek death?"_

The Tayu shook her head and smiled sadly again. _"You would never understand, my Lord. So what is the point in asking?"_

"_There is no reason for you to do so."_

She drew a deep breath on her tobacco pipe. _"I am nothing but a fallen flower petal, destined to drift along with the river, wherever it may lead me. Let's just say I grew bored of life."_

"_Bored? This Sesshoumaru sees no reason as to why the most popular Tayu in Yoshiwara would feel bored. There are countless of men who would give an arm to speak to you, and a leg to spend a night in your chamber."_

The Tayu turned to look at the demon lord directly in the face, before blowing the smoke sensually in his direction._ "You sugar coat your words, Lord Sesshoumaru. Now, I have a suggestion."_

Silence on the part of the demon lord prompted the beautiful courtesan to continue.

"_Let's do away with the formalities for tonight."_ She gestured elegantly with her slender hand, waving it gently_. "Talk to me as if you would talk to a normal woman, not a Tayu. Just take it that you're doing a dying woman a final favor."_

Sesshoumaru remained silent.

Kagome the Tayu seemed to take his silence as consent again, before continuing.

"_Those men…they only want to fuck me. There's nothing else they want. Maybe that's what you want from me too, Lord Sesshoumaru. You've fucked me before right? That winter night, when the Lord of the Eastern Lands booked me as an offering to you. I did not forget that night…you were one of the rare ones who brought me intense pleasure."_

It was still silence on Sesshoumaru's part.

"_Pardon my audacity, Lord Sesshoumaru, but all of you men are the same. You believe that my glamorous exterior reflects happiness and contentment with life, but you have no idea how flawed you are in thinking so."_

"_What makes you say so? You, Higurashi, are a beautiful woman with no lack of attention from the men who have laid eyes on you. Beautiful, just like a flower. It is most probably a life which many women crave yet are unable to attain."_

Self-mockery was evident in her voice when the Tayu replied. _"Beautiful?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Beauty in a woman is a curse, Lord Sesshoumaru. The flower blooms, and what becomes of it eventually? It wilts. The beauty only paves the way to a pathetic demise." _She said softly, yet her tone was firm with the strong belief she held in her statement._ "Being born beautiful into an aristocratic family might mean a good life, but if one was like me, born so-called beautiful into a peasant's family…it would only mean one thing."_

Drawing another deep breath on her pipe, she exhaled with a small sigh.

"_It would mean income for the family. Much-needed income became within reach, as long as the daughter was beautiful enough to be pushed into the pits of flaming hell known as Yoshiwara. Once in, there's no way out."_

Once again, she was replied with silence.

"_You are finding it absurd, aren't you? Why would the flowery pleasure streets, abundant with enjoyment of both the refined and carnal sort, be likened to hell? While I do not detest what I do for a living, I find no meaning, no meaning at all in my life. The ghosts of the past have caught up with me and closed in so suffocatingly; there is no other way out except for death."_

"_No meaning?"_

"_Yes, no meaning in the least. Pardon the language, but I get fucked for a living. It is perhaps more than that, as you might point out, but behind all the fancy poetry, dance, song and calligraphy, what men come to me for is sex. No matter how hard I work at my dancing, singing and political conversations, well, it boils down to me lying on my back, legs spread, awaiting to be taken just like the cheap whore I am."_

"_You fascinate this Sesshoumaru, Tayu no Higurashi. First, you claim beauty to be a curse. Secondly, you do what you claim to dislike so much very well indeed."_

"_It so seems as if the night we spent together last winter has left a strong impression on you, Lord Sesshoumaru." _Her flirting was blatant yet subtle at the very same time with reference to the second part of his statement.

Sesshoumaru's expression did not change._ "It has indeed. This Sesshoumaru is unable to deny that you are talented and well-versed in the art of eroticism."_

"_Anyone would be, if she was trained to do so. I was sold into Yoshiwara at the age of six to be the child servant to the oirans…naturally, seeing them involved in sexual acts was rather common. I knew it was my destiny, my cursed fate, so instead of being weak at it…I figured it would be more useful to learn whatever I could. I don't deny there were times when I wished I was an ordinary woman though."_

The Tayu continued, as the demon lord stood unmoving behind her on the bridge.

"_Sex was pleasurable, of course. It was something I had to do, so it made more sense for me to enjoy it. I appreciate the carnal sensation of heated flesh against flesh, the erotic sounds of the coupling itself and the cries and moans emitted as the physical bodies sought the pinnacle of pleasure. Pardon how frank and crude I can get…please just allow me to be like this before I leave this terrible life behind."_

"_You know, sex is supposed to be gratifying. Yet ironically, I find it so hollow. It is a joke, really, when a woman is supposedly filled when the penis enters her eager body and begins to move in, and out. In, and out. Repeatedly, till both were spent and satisfied. They would slowly reach for me, undo my obi and push me down onto the futon. Then it begins, like a familiar ritual. Yet I feel dreadfully empty, and emptier especially when it all ends. It was so intimate, yet so distant. Countless of nights were spent sobbing into my perfumed pillow after the penis was withdrawn and the man left my futon for the woman his heart truly belonged to. I don't get endearing words, gentle caresses or kisses. I crave it, I crave experiencing it for myself…how it feels like to be loved and treasured. It hurts to know that I am just a good-looking vessel." _

Sesshoumaru remained silent as if in deep thought, before he replied._ "I am sure there are men who would love and treasure one as mesmerizing as you. It is just that you haven't met one yet."_

Looking directly at the demon lord with eyes filled with hurt and painful cynicism, the Tayu asked softly,_ "Pray tell, Lord Sesshoumaru. Are you capable of loving me? Are you capable of treating me like a wife, whom you love and care for and spend your life with?"_

She did not get an answer, and they knew very well, that no man with substantial social standing would want to take a courtesan, regardless of her ranking in the pleasure quarters, as a wife. The tragic fact would be how these courtesans get to meet no other men other than those with considerable social standing.

He saw her obvious agony, and for some odd reasons, he felt a twinge in his icy heart. He felt guilty, despite himself, for being one of those men who derived great pleasure from her lithe body and her talented mouth and hands, but yet are unable to see her as beyond a tool of pleasure.

"_This…This Sesshoumaru is sorry."_

"_Don't apologize, Lord Sesshoumaru. It has nothing to do with you in the least. We know it only too well…I'd rather you not mask the truth with flowery words." _She laughed sadly._ "But I am a naïve and silly girl. Even in death, I hold on to my fantasies."_

Raising her arm, she showed him the loop around her slender wrist._ "I was hoping to try my luck…you know, see if I can find someone who was willing to die with me. Blame it on romanticism…I was thinking of a suicide pact. At least when my body is discovered, I'd belong to someone, not simply just a wilted flower from the Yoshiwara. And…of all people, you came along."_

Sesshoumaru's face remained as stoic as ever, but years of entertainment with men made her sense the slightest tinge of humored exasperation from his tone.

"_Coincidental, isn't it, that this Sesshoumaru came by to be a partner in death."_

That got a laugh from her, and he realized how beautiful she looked when she was laughing, with the moonlight accentuating her pretty features. She looked ethereal. _"That's impossible, Lord Sesshoumaru. Powerful demon lords like you can't possibly be killed like this. It takes a lot more for you to die, doesn't it?"_

He nodded.

"_Humans like me are vulnerable, I guess. We are fallible and cowardly by nature. The loneliness is something I can no longer bear. I am choosing the simple way out of this mess…by dying so I can reincarnate into a better and more dignified life. I want to be loved, to be treasured and to be someone's wife and hopefully, someone's mother."_

Sesshoumaru gazed upon her, feeling inwardly confused as to why he was even bothering with this enchanting creature. Sure, they shared a night together, but other than that he knew virtually nothing else about her. Yet when he saw her sitting on the ledge of the Nihonbashi, determined to leave this wretched life she was leading, he found a compellation within himself to talk to her. He found himself walking forward to her, and gently, as gentle as he could, he cradled her face with palm and tenderly pulled her into a protective embrace.

"_You mean like this, Higurashi?" _He whispered softly.

She dropped the pipe in her hand, and it rolled off to the side upon hitting the wooden planks of the bridge. Inhaling sharply at the tender contact which she had never experienced before, she clung onto him tightly, taking in his strong, masculine presence and allowing herself to depend on his strength to dispel her loneliness in that moment. She felt secure, and at the same time, it made her even more melancholic than before. This was what she could never, ever have as a courtesan in the transient world of pleasure at the Yoshiwara. Lord Sesshoumaru was kind, despite his aloof and heartless reputation. He gave her what no man ever gave, and it was not even at her request.

"_Call me by my name…the name I was born with…" _She whispered as a lone tear fell.

He held her closer.

"_What's your name?"_

"_Kagome…" _She whispered._ "Higurashi Kagome."_

_To be continued…_

A/N: This story was originally meant to be a oneshot, but it is too long and I am really tired since I came up with this entire thing in three hours! Part two will come soon, so please let me know how you feel about this new story! I know it is very different from my usual works, but I hope you guys enjoyed reading nonetheless.


	2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimers apply.

A/N: A big thank you to all for the support and kind motivation for the first chapter of "Once upon an Edo night"! I love those of you who were so kind as to leave me a review telling me how you felt about it. I was initially a little apprehensive about posting this because I haven't really written anything revolving around such themes before.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who voted for Wisteria in the Dokuga 2nd quarter awards as well! We wouldn't have won three awards if it wasn't for you lovely people. Thank you very much!

Without further ado, here's the second chapter to the story and there will be a final chapter soon.

_**

* * *

**_

Once upon an Edo night

"_Kagome…"_ He said softly, even though he was incapable of sounding too romantic or endearing towards her.

There was no love to speak of between the two of them, but Sesshoumaru knew he had a soft spot for this woman, with whom he spent an intimate night two seasons ago. Guilt struck him once again in the deepest spots of his heart as recollections of a certain night last winter proved to him that he was just like all the other men in her ill-fated past.

He had enjoyed her excellent company, her enchanting beauty, her songs, dances and her intelligence. Sesshoumaru was quite certain he would never meet another female who had such insightful views on Manchurian invasions at the Japanese borders. But after enjoying the company she provided, the agenda went back to being sex, and he took her right there on the tatami in the guest room after two rounds of rice wine.

He had not been gentle or formal with her; he had heard of her extraordinary and almost legendary talents and creativity in the art of eroticism from other lords.

He did not kiss her, not on her mouth, at least.

He had not even bothered with preparing a futon back then.

Oddly enough, he now felt uncomfortable about the way he treated her.

It was against the code of honor he lived by – somehow he managed his life so well, yet this one woman from the pleasure quarters of Edo showed him otherwise. He had prided himself on being a man of honor and righteousness, yet the one he did injustice to was a defenseless woman whom Fate betrayed and abandoned.

If he could go back to that time, he would have treated her like the precious and fragile flower she truly was. Even if it was just a tryst for one night.

The smoky tobacco scent, mingled with the sensual fragrance of sandalwood on her, gave the atmosphere a bittersweet tinge. Once again, it was sad and happy at the same time. Death, seemingly so final, would bring this beautiful butterfly liberation from the iron webs trapping her in her living hell.

He could feel her shaking slightly as she allowed tears to fall – tears she was shedding for her ill-fated life, the mortal world she was about to leave behind, and for the tenderness this demon lord was showing her.

There they stood for a few minutes, until the beautiful Tayu gently excused herself from his hold, gracefully dabbing at her eyes with the embroidered sleeve of her exquisite kimono. Her red rimmed eyes looked up into his slightly glazed, aloof yet soft eyes, and she gave him a smile. A smile which made her luscious lips remind him of the carmine camellia blooms of late autumn along the common stone paths – born in an unsightly and dirty place, yet grown to be so elegant and beautiful.

He looked back at her and tried to give her a gentle smile, but try as he might, Sesshoumaru could not get his stubborn lips to move into one. It was just something he was not quite used to, and he despised himself for not being able to offer it to her when she needed it.

Perhaps she realized that she had put too many feelings into this momentary tenderness and emotional intimacy, for she immediately assumed the slightly haughty and aloof face, matched with her trademark flirtatious expression. Yet the sadness was unable to be concealed; it shone through her features, rouge and everything else to manifest itself on her delicate face.

"_Thank you, Lord Sesshoumaru…You are a good man. It is just my misfortune to have not known you earlier in life…you would have made a good husband, on top of a good lover." _

She turned to look away from him, and settled for gazing out into the darkened distance, at nowhere in particular. The moon's reflection cracked into a million fragments on the uneven surface of the river, casting odd shadows on them.

"_Just like how life on earth awaits precious rain…maybe all my life, I have been awaiting this moment."_

He did not reply, but his gaze on her slender form was almost melancholic. He knew she was trying to appear strong and fearless, but he could smell the fresh tears she was trying to hide.

"_Tayu no Higurashi…"_

"_Please…can you call me Kagome again?"_ She asked softly. _"Just like how you did earlier."_

"_Kagome."_

"_Yes?"_

"_Tears are not meant for one so beautiful."_

Kagome laughed, her laugh clear and sorrowful. _"Don't make me fall for you, Lord Sesshoumaru…it will only mean more agony for me in my remaining time in this floating world."_

"_This Sesshoumaru does not have such despicable intentions."_

Upon hearing his words, spoken so truthfully and honorably, made her turn to look at him over her shoulder. The lulling summer breeze whipped back a lock of stray hair which had fallen from its earlier confines, and her mesmerizing eyes, accentuated by the fragmented lights of the night, made Sesshoumaru realize how ethereally beautiful she was. She sighed, and gave him a grateful smile.

"_I know."_ She said. _"Here, let me give you something to remember me by."_

"_And that would be?"_

"_It is nothing fancy, but it would require you to remember and ponder over in your heart."_

Catching his gaze, she recited softly and emotionally.

"_Nagaraeba_

_Mata kono goro ya_

_Shinobaremu_

_Ushi to mishi yo zo…"_

_(I may live on_

_Until I long for this time_

_In which I am so unhappy…)_

But before she could finish the haiku she was reciting, Sesshoumaru surprised her by completing it for her.

"_Ima wa koishiki."_

_(And remember it fondly.)_

Kagome's eyes widened a fraction, before she smiled sweetly to herself. It was not the smile he had seen on her previously, the smile she used to lure men into the web of seduction she spun for a living, but rather, it was a smile which came from the heart. It made her look innocent and adorable, not at all like the Tayu she was painstakingly groomed to be.

"_Thank you for this moment then, Lord Sesshoumaru. I…I hope you really will remember it fondly."_

"_You have this Sesshoumaru's word that it will be retained in my memory for as long as I live."_

_He knew he would never ever be able to forget this woman, even if he wanted to. Her beauty, personality and emotional complexes, along with the most unusual circumstances under which they met and interacted, made an impact he knew he could never erase._

"_Why didn't I have the good fortune to meet you in my younger days?" _She mused, playing with her heavy sleeve. _"I came as empty as a cicada shell and leave as it is, while this flower-like human heart, fragile with my assumptions about happiness, withers away imperceptibly."_

Her tragic words, spoken truthfully and intelligently, gave him the courage to speak.

"_Kagome."_

"_Hmm?"_

"_Do you believe in reincarnation?"_

"_I do." _She nodded._ "Which is why I am doing this. You?"_

"_I do too. Why would that be the reason for death?"_

"_I believe my next life would not be so cursed." _She said softly, her voice hopeful as if trying to convince herself.

"_Go on."_

"_I will be telling a very long story, Lord Sesshoumaru."_

"_Just go on."_

"_I am not hoping for fineries or a grand life. All I want is to be a normal woman, not one destined to drift in the floating world like a petal in the river. Just a plain, normal woman like how my mother was…a daughter of a rice farmer, who eventually married another rice farmer after meeting him at the local market. They were happy though they were so poor. Then they had children, four of them."_

Her wishes were so simple; it made the demon lord's icy heart feel as if someone was gripping it. Not agonizing, but just uncomfortably so.

"_I was born the youngest, with two older sisters and one older brother. The number of children was too many for them to afford bringing up…and…and it did not help in the least that everyone who saw me at around three or four years of age told them how beautiful their youngest child would grow up to be. They said my lips were like cherry blossom petals, delicate yet plump with slightly upturned edges that made me look as if I was perpetually smiling. According to them, my eyes could talk, my skin was smooth and my slender frame made it obvious that I'd grow up to be beautiful. Who would know that I'd end up selling that smile and body for a shelter over my head?"_

"_It happened that fateful day when I was out with my oldest sister, Yugiri. I was only six. She brought the rice we harvested to sell at the market, and luck was on our side – we managed to sell it all. I remembered helping her scoop ladles of grain into little sacks. Yugiri was very happy…she said I was a good little girl and she bought a sugared dough doll for me as a reward. It was a rare treat…I was so happy with the sugared dough doll that I could not even bring myself to lick it. I just kept looking at it, holding it very tightly in my hands."_

"_It was on our way home when we came across a procession of some sort. For the first time in my life, I saw so many kimonos that were made of the most beautiful materials, prints and colors. For once, kimonos were not like the thin, scratchy cotton or hemp ones I was used to. Their kimonos reflected the sunrays at certain angles…silk, as I found out later. The ladies were so well-groomed, with perfectly painted faces and equally perfect hair arrangements. Their getas were high and they towered over almost everyon with theme, while they walked slowly along the streets accompanied by so many attendants in a sensual, erotic figure-of-eight manner. But I didn't like them; I was adverse. They looked too perfect, like dolls."_

"_Yugiri held me close to keep me from getting in their way, and till today, I can still remember her hands, coarse from working hard in the fields, holding me by the arm. But I was never one to stay still obediently. I fidgeted, and my sugared dough doll fell from my hands, rolling onto the street. Guess what I did?" Kagome laughed sadly again, as she revisited memory lane. "I ran out to retrieve it, and bumped into a red and gold and black kimono which smelt most heavenly of the fresh yuzu orange fragrance oils. I fell, and the beautiful doll I bumped into teetered precariously before her attendants rushed forward to hold her. Her geta was ridiculously high compared to all the others'. That was the first Tayu I came into contact with, as I realized later. Highest ranking of all the courtesans. Her attendants started shouting at me and Yugiri ran forward and fell to her knees, bowing repeatedly and crying out apologies, while I remained adamantly grumpy that my sugared dough doll was soiled."_

"_The Tayu was kind. She signaled for one of her attendants to give us some money. 'Go buy another one, my child.' She told me. She was so beautiful, and her voice was equally so. She took a sensually dignified step ahead, before pausing in her footsteps and turning around to take a long, lingering look at me. Not just at my face, but from head to toe. 'My, my. What a beautiful little girl. Where do you live?' She had asked kindly. Yugiri looked absolutely petrified at that question and she visibly pressed her lips shut. But I did not know better then. Smiling back at her as brightly as I could manage, since she was nice to me, I said it clearly and brightly, 'Just by the stream behind the Eastern gates of this town, where the rice farms are! It is the third hut.'"_

_Shaking her head in resigned amusement, Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru with a helpless, amused expression. "I recalled how my parents cried as they hugged me, but I was just very happy because the Tayu came again, without her garish garb but nonetheless beautiful, with an entire box of sugared dough dolls and many presents for the rest of the family. She brought me to ride along with her in a palanquin, and…it was Yoshiwara from then till today. The hurt has never left me."_

"_In my next life, I don't want the curse of beauty again. I just want to be born into a normal middle-class family, plain in appearance and be allowed to live a life of dignity and freedom. I want to be loved, happy and be a good wife and mother. I would like to meet a good man like you."_

He nodded as he pondered her words, as she regarded him with a bright, rather playful smile._ "Why were you asking me about reincarnation? Could it be that…you wish to meet me in our next lives?"_

"_It does not sound like a bad idea to this Sesshoumaru, if there is really a next lifetime."_

Her laughter reminded him of the wind chimes hung up in the rafters of Japanese households during summer._ "You are doing a fine job of humoring this dying woman, Lord Sesshoumaru. But I'd have to wait for a very long time…given how difficult it is for you to die."_

"_That would give you ample time to regret your decision and reborn into somewhere where this Sesshoumaru might not be able to find you."_

She laughed again, at the wit and subtle humor in his speech._ "I'd soon be leaving this place alone…so after you die; you might have a hard time finding me. You are a good man…just don't let me meet you too late in my next life again."_

_He did not say anything to that._

Kagome smiled ruefully to herself. What was she expecting? This was Sesshoumaru, demon lord of the Western Lands. But there was something she wanted to do before she died.

"_Lord Sesshoumaru. I have a request."_

"_What would that be?"_

"_Can you come over closer by my side?"_

He did not question her reasons, and did so.

From her sitting position on the ledge of the Nihonbashi, Kagome leaned over slowly and kissed Sesshoumaru softly on the lips.

He stood still as a statue, and did not do anything else until she gently pulled away.

The demon lord remained silent, and the Tayu turned away from him. She did not want him to see her brimming tears despite the smile on her face, especially when the time for her to take her own life was coming so soon. She was awaiting the chime of the night bells from the Buddhist monastery up in the hills. Once the chiming starts, she would jump into the river, and let her tainted soul leave along with the soothing chimes of the sacred bells to wherever it was destined to go.

"_Shouldn't you be going by now?"_ She asked him softly._ "It won't be a pretty sight, you know."_

"_Hm."_

"_Thank you, Lord Sesshoumaru."_ She continued. _"For everything. I am thankful to have met you. Make sure you will come looking for me in our next lives."_

The nightly chiming of the bells started. They reverberated in the summer breezes, rolling along and spreading across the entire expanse of the cities and towns in the vicinity like a calming mantra.

Kagome looked up into the inky darkness of the skies.

"_It is time." _Her words left in a whisper.

"_Please leave, and walk away without turning back. I…I don't want your final memory of me to be such a tainted one."_

Taking a deep breath, she looked around at the surroundings which she had grown so accustomed to over the years, to the extent of taking them for granted. From where she was, she could see the lights from Yoshiwara, and she wondered how they would react when her body was discovered in the river. Would they be sad? Would anyone shed a tear? Or would anyone bother to go to her grave annually to pay their respects, light an incense stick and offer a spray of flowers?

It was too late to worry about this. She just hoped they would not get too much of a shock when they find her missing from her futon the next day and eventually, see her body being fished out of the river.

Focusing on a verse from the Buddhist scriptures she read the night before, Kagome closed her eyes and allowed her mind to flow along with the night chiming. She leaned forward, anticipating the feeling of falling before she reached the freedom she craved…

But that sensation of falling never came. She felt a very strong arm grip hers, pulling her back from her leaning position. Her eyes flew open, and she caught a flash of silver and molten gold.

"_Wait."_

"_Lord Sesshoumaru? Wh-Why?"_

"_Give me your hand."_

Still in shock, Kagome extended her right hand towards the demon lord, who held up the other loop to the red cord around her wrist and slipped his left hand through it.

"_What are you doing?"_

"_Making sure that this Sesshoumaru can find you in our next lives."_

_Her eyes widened as the unshed tears fell and rolled by lips upturned in a grateful smile. "Lord Sesshoumaru...I was only joking about making sure you find me…"_

"_This Sesshoumaru was not joking."_

"_But…you don't love me. Why are you doing this for me?"_

"_Not now, but in this Sesshoumaru's next life he will."_

"_This…this means I will die not as a merely courtesan of the Red Lantern House of Yoshiwara. I will die as…Lord Sesshoumaru's woman."_

He nodded.

"_You have no idea how much this means to me…"_ She whispered. He would not die from drowning like this, but he would be accompanying her until the very end of her journey. Subsequently in time, death would visit him, and till then, they would once again meet.

In a fluid motion, he positioned himself by her side on the ledge of the bridge. Looking at her hauntingly beautiful features, accentuated by the ghost of a smile she wore, Sesshoumaru leaned in and kissed her fully on those lips.

* * *

_To be continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

Standard disclaimers apply.

A/N: Here's the final installment of "Once upon an Edo night"! Thank you to all for your support throughout this short story, and once again, I hope you enjoyed this.

* * *

_**Once upon an Edo night**_

She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his surprisingly soft lips upon her own, telling herself that if she was allowed to bring a memory into the next life with her, it would be this. Kisses as signs of affection were so rare.

The initial fears of death were dispelled by his assuring presence by her side and his companionship on the final journey she was about to take in the miserable life she led as a Yoshiwara courtesan.

The chaste kiss lingered, before they slowly drew apart.

Memories flashed across her mind as she realized this was really the end. The end of everything she had been doing in the twenty odd years of her life, the end of the bothersome and meaningless routine she called life.

She recalled the loving faces of her parents, her sister Yugiri and the other siblings as they worked together on the small plot of rice paddy…

…The Yoshiwara procession on the streets of the town where she first came to the fateful crossroad that would change her life forever, along with the soiled sugared dough doll.

…The Tayu who brought her into Yoshiwara, who despite having bought her like a commodity, treated her with care and concern.

…The soft futon she slept on the first night at Yoshiwara…

…The injustice she suffered when she was growing up with the other child servants to the oirans and tayus, when they would gang up on her because she learned song and dance faster than any of them.

…The times she blushed and clapped her hands over her mouth when she spied the oirans engage in their nightly activities with their clients from behind the screens…

…The first time she was showed a jade carving of a male phallus and taught how to hold it, touch it in all sorts of ways to bring pleasure…

…The night she lost her virginity at twelve to a man who was in his forties, some owner of a few textile shops in the neighboring city.

…The day when one of her older oiran sisters was found missing from the Red Lantern House because she bravely eloped with a scholar whom she fell into a forbidden love with. Kagome had wept when she heard the news, but she later realized it was not out of sadness, but of joy for the oiran.

…Then she heard the death news of the oiran sister. She, along with the scholar she loved, was discovered by the Yoshiwara chaperones, and was to be dragged back to the Yoshiwara. But before the chaperones could do anything, the ill-fated lovers had taken their own lives with the daggers they concealed in their robes. Kagome had wept again, but once again, it was out of joy for the oiran. At the very least, she had found love.

She then recalled her own elevation in status from koshi-joro to that of oiran. Then came the stringent and somewhat humiliating process of considering her for the elevation to the status of Tayu. The proprietors of the teahouses, kabuki theaters, and textile merchants were consulted, and the chaperones of the oirans and tayus of the Yoshiwara district were called upon to judge her on her beauty, intelligence, earning power and cultural refinement. Her beautiful face, with its shape they described as melon seed-shaped, accentuated by her well-defined brows, large expressive eyes, fitted the criteria they were looking for. Her mouth, mesmerizing with its slightly upturned edges, was highly-valued.

There were a long list of flaws that could permanently remove a courtesan from consideration for Tayu status, but she was lucky – there were none they could find in her. On top of that, she was very strict and particular about her own behavior – Kagome never once used vulgar language or ate in front of her influential clients during her sessions with them.

She became a Tayu at the age of sixteen.

Only the wealthiest and most influential men could patronize her, with her value being almost forty times higher than the regular courtesan, the hashi. Her reputation reached far and wide to countries like China and Korea, with poets paying homage to her in their writings. She met some men, and rejected a lot of them as well. She became known as a "castle-toppler", a term referring to an immensely beautiful woman who could essentially drain the finances of a powerful daimyo or lord and literally topple his castle.

…Her first client as Tayu was none other than Lord Sesshoumaru of the Western Lands. She was a congratulatory gift to him from another demon lord for his battle victory against some rebels.

She remembered the way his eyes darkened with arousal and desire when she seduced him with her liberal yet subtle discussions on carnal pleasures, before he abruptly pushed her onto her back against the tatami flooring of his grand guestroom and undid her obi.

His beauty was her undoing; she was so desperate for a sign of tender affection from the handsome warrior lord, she went all out in her seduction of him. She hoped to tantalize, titillate and captivate his soul, just like how the art of seduction should be, with other aspects like perhaps bathing, dining, conversation and so on, on top of lovemaking. But somehow she failed to do so with him. As a Tayu, she should have appeared to be harder to get. So much for her training and great self-discipline in appearing aloof and aristocratic in front of men; they did not work in the least in his presence.

So she went to great lengths with her physical creativity, doing acts that even she as a courtesan could blush at, such as sensually de-shelling a boiled quail's egg with her mouth before slowly pushing it between her spread legs and asking him if he was hungry for a snack. He was impossibly turned on by that, and proceeded to give her the intense pleasure she never experienced with human men with his talented mouth. At times she played coy, touching all over his body only with her fingertips and nothing more.

She initiated at least six positions with him; even trying two of the seemingly physically impossible ones from one of her many pillow books. She even allowed him to hold the blade of his lethal sword against the soft, creamy expanse of her neck, a highly regarded erogenous zone, in a dangerously erotic display as he sought pleasure from her like there was no tomorrow. That was something neither could forget – swords were a taboo in Yoshiwara, yet they were practically part of life for Sesshoumaru, making the sexual experience both forbidden, familiar and wildly exciting.

But eventually, it gained her nothing – Lord Sesshoumaru did not feel love for her; he felt only lust. The next morning, despite all the intimacy the night before, went back to being the detached formalities.

"_What would death be like?"_ She whispered, even though she knew he would not really have the answer to that.

"_This Sesshoumaru has no idea."_

She nodded, fully aware that she was not really anticipating an answer herself.

"_Perhaps, like a very long slumber?"_ She mused softly, while a small smile crept into her visage again. _"And when I awake, I'd have you with me. We will fall in love, just like the mandarin ducks, won't we?"_

"_Wait for this Sesshoumaru."_

She regarded his visage slowly, while the shadows of the night danced across them languidly.

"_My Lord…are you sure you would want to do this?"_ Kagome asked worriedly. _"It is after all…detrimental to your honor and reputation should outsiders find out about how you accompanied me on a suicide pact, yet did not die in the process…"  
_

"_As you put it, those are outsiders. They are not worth thought, and neither would they understand."_

Kagome bit her lower lip. She was well aware that while Sesshoumaru might sound as if he did not care in the least, an aristocrat of his status depends very much on reputation and honor. In their society, a man who did not perish from the lovers' suicide pact and goes on to carry on with his life while leaving the girl to travel to the underworld alone was frowned upon and despised.

"_Please, Lord Sesshoumaru. I have yet another request to make of you."_

His silence indicated his attention.

"_Leave immediately after I die," _She said in a soft but steely voice._ "Leave no trace or evidence of you having been with me."_

Sesshoumaru did not reply.

"_Thank you." _Kagome bowed politely with a slight inclination of her head.

"_This Sesshoumaru will come for you in our next lives. Till then, please wait patiently."_

"_I will. See you soon." _She added with a slightly playful smile.

The chiming of the night bells of the monastery was almost ending, and gently, the two figures on the ledge of the Nihonbashi caressed each other's cheeks in a silent act of finality to their entwined fates in that life.

Then they leapt off the ledge together, before a loud splash was heard from the inky waters underneath. Nothing was heard from water subsequently, and the night song of the crickets, shocked into silence a few moments ago, once again resumed, dominating the night.

The only things that revealed the Tayu's earlier presence were her high geta and the forgotten tobacco pipe left on the bridge.

Nothing else was left behind – not even her sorrow, her anguish and her final moments of contentment.

A few moments went by in stunned, heavily emotional silence, before the scene magically transformed like a tendril of smoke disappearing into the balmy summer air.

Takahashi Sesshoumaru and Higurashi Kagome of modern Tokyo, year 2009 found themselves standing on the grassy banks of what was obviously the river into which themselves from the previous lives jumped moments ago.

The unmistakable sounds of someone emerging from the river waters were heard, and they could see the demon lord Sesshoumaru carrying the slender, lifeless body of the young Tayu in his arms, walking towards land. Their wrists were still bound together by the red cord.

His expression was unreadable as he slowly walked up the grassy banks, unaware of the presence of the voyeurs that time and Fate worked together to send back to Edo in 1639. Rivulets of water ran down his face and his garments, leaving a trail of water and trodden grass from the river. It was impossible to tell how the demon lord was feeling then.

Lying motionlessly, looking serene and contented as she slept protected and secure in the arms of the man who accompanied her to the gates of Hell, the Tayu was as elegant and as dignified in death. Other than being drenched, there was no sign of any distress in the process of death. There was also no sign of the taint which marred this beautiful creature's bitter life. It was finality at its most beautiful, like a swan's song. There was no life remaining in the mesmerizing shell she used to occupy, even though a ghost of a smile was visible on her petal lips. Was it the natural upturn of her lips which she was blessed with since birth, or was she smiling in contentment in her final moments?

A particularly strong gust of summer night wind blew, and as if worried that it was going to cause the Tayu to feel cold, the demon lord held her lifeless body closer to his own.

He came to a spot with wild dandelions in bloom, and gently, he placed her limp body onto the soft grass. Her extravagantly-colored kimono, all three layers of it, formed a stark contrast to the lush green she was lying against. Her hair was slightly out of place, and even though he knew nothing about the grooming techniques of the ladies of Yoshiwara, the demon lord slowly brushed the strands of hair away from her face with the hand that was not bound to hers.

A few moments went by in companionable silence with him looking at her peaceful visage quietly, before he slowly withdrew his hand from the loop binding them together. Picking three wild dandelions, he placed them over her still bosom in replacement of the three arrows used in Japanese burial tradition.

Standing up to leave, he cast a final glance at her peaceful form in death. The demon lord turned to walk away, but before he took the second step, he paused in his steps and turned back to where her body was. Then, despite of what she so sincerely requested of him, he tore out a piece of his sleeve where his family's heritage crest – the red hexagon with the white cherry blossom crest - and gently placed it in her hand, closing her slender, tapered fingers over it.

He left without a backward glance.

As magically as they found themselves in old Edo of 1639, Takahashi Sesshoumaru and Higurashi Kagome returned to the noisy, urban Tokyo of 2009, back to the very same spot on the Nihonbashi on which they were standing. The nostalgic surroundings of Edo, accentuated by its traditional beauty, swirled into a vortex of colors, predominantly brown, green, red and black, before it miraculously unraveled itself back into a predominantly grey and orange landscape of concrete jungles, highways and street lights, punctuated by the urban noises.

Down below the bridge they were standing on, was the very same river in which Lord Sesshoumaru and Tayu no Higurashi plunged into three hundred and seventy years ago.

Neither was able to break the heavy emotions that weighed on their hearts as the forgotten memories were recalled in them by the spiritual experience awhile ago. It was such an unforgettable experience – there was nothing she has seen in this lifetime that could rival the raw emotional pain, the nostalgic beauty of the ancient Japanese society, the ill fate of her previous life and finally, the peace that the Tayu find eventually in the demon lord.

"Higurashi-san…here."

She snapped out of her reverie, and turned to look at the handkerchief offered to her by the man by her side. It was then she realized she had been crying.

Nodding, she took the handkerchief from him, before realizing that he too, had a film of unshed tears clouding his eyes.

Raising the handkerchief to his eyes, she dabbed lightly while the tears from her own rolled down her cheeks to stain the blouse she was wearing.

Closing his hand around her wrist, Sesshoumaru gently but firmly moved her arm such that it was by her side, and leaned in to press his lips against hers in what was not a shy, tentative first kiss, but rather, a kiss that expressed the heartfelt emotions of having found a long lost love, destined from three centuries ago.

"Takahashi-san, what-" Kagome gasped in surprise against his lips.

"Fulfilling the promise I made three hundred over years ago." He whispered against her lips, before kissing her again. This time round, Kagome did not protest.

Eventually when they drew apart, Sesshoumaru looked endearingly at the beautiful woman standing in front of him. Three hundred over years ago, he had found her equally beautifully and charming, yet society did not allow their union and he did not love her back then. This time round, Fate has arranged for them to meet once more, and he would be damned if he missed the second chance he was so kindly given.

"Now I finally know why I found you so familiar the very first time I met you at our company's annual dinner. Somehow I felt an affinity with you, and I had to talk to you." He said, reaching out to tuck a lock of stray hair behind her ear.

Kagome nodded, before saying softly. "Our wishes in the past lives came true after all…I managed to meet you before…before you were taken by any other woman."

"Our wishes did not come true entirely. You wished to be free from the curse of beauty, didn't you? It did not happen, for you are as beautiful as you were back then. But this time round, I will not allow anything to make you unhappy or sad again. Such beauty is meant to be loved and cherished…never will you once again be a floating petal on the river current."

"Takahashi-san…"

"Should you still be calling me that?"

"Sesshoumaru." She said shyly, hoping the blush on her face was not too obvious.

He reached out for her hands, slender and fair like they were on the Tayu three hundred years ago, and ran the pads of his thumb over them gently.

"Will you be my girlfriend, Kagome? Let me love you and care for you, just like how I promised you."

She looked at him and a smile of bliss spread across her face, before tears started welling up in her eyes again. She had finally found true love, something her previous life lived and ended for.

"What took you so long?" She chided playfully as she threw her arms around him and he pulled her into a strong, tight embrace. It felt so right – just like two pieces of puzzle coming together. "Three hundred over years for this…"

"I couldn't help being a demon lord, could I?" He laughed, inhaling the soft powdery scent of her hair. "It is not easy to die, you know."

"Arrogant!" She laughed teasingly, drawing the back of her hand across her eyes to wipe the tears away. "Lord Sesshoumaru was really, really charismatic though. It was no wonder that I fell for him back then."

"He's still me, isn't he?"

"Well…you can try. Good luck with finding that same costume though."

He laughed and tickled her, to which she laughed and squealed. "Can you imagine wearing that to the next company Halloween night?"

"Please don't! You still have your CEO image to upkeep. I'd never be able to walk beside you without collapsing from laughter." Kagome teased. "Your Hercules garb last year was not bad, though."

He shrugged. "I liked your Morticia Adams look. Sexy."

Kagome smiled at the compliment. "But then again, if you dress up as Lord Sesshoumaru, well…I might consider dressing up as Tayu no Higurashi."

"Speaking of which…" Sesshoumaru's eyes closed momentarily as if in deep thought, before saying out loud to no one in particular. "Thank you."

Kagome understood in that instant, and she too, looked out into the inky depths of the river and said with heartfelt gratitude. "Thank you. Thank you for everything."

Turning to Sesshoumaru, she said softly. "I hope the Tayu found peace."

"I am sure she did. Everything she wished for in the previous life came true," Sesshoumaru replied. "With the exception of the part about beauty."

"Cheeky guy." Kagome muttered in mock exasperation, smiling the entire time. "You were so disobedient since three hundred years ago! What should I do about you?"

"Disobedient? What did I do?"

"I told you not to leave any trace or evidence of your presence on me, didn't I?" She asked, poking him playfully. "But still, you left your family crest behind. I wonder what happened subsequently."

"We would never know. But I guess Lord Sesshoumaru could not bear to leave Kagome the Tayu back then without a proper status. As we know from history, the fates of courtesans like that would be…"

Kagome nodded sadly. "They would be dumped into unmarked graves."

"He couldn't bear to see that happen to her." Seshoumaru said softly.

Kagome gave him a questioning look.

"I know, because I would have done the same thing."

She looked at him endearingly, and silently hoped that somehow Tayu no Higurashi could hear this. "Thank you."

"Silly girl…" He chided affectionately, holding her close once again. "Some things will never change…take my word for it."

Kagome nodded blissfully.

"Now…shall we get going?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"Where to?" She asked, smiling up at him as they drew apart from the embrace. If she was not wrong, she could see that his eyes were somewhat…cheeky and up to something naughty.

"I wonder if…you know…" He asked her suggestively, his expression playful and cheeky. "…changed after so many years. We can always…check."

"What are you talking about?" She blushed furiously, asking him even though she knew very well what he was referring to.

"Hmm…I wonder what I am referring to…" Sesshoumaru laughed as he walked ahead, leaving a flushing and indignant Kagome behind.

"Takahashi Sesshoumaru! I…I can't believe that after so much has happened tonight, all you can think about is whether your sexual prowess is still so legendary!"

"Now, I didn't say that. You are such a gutter-brain, my dear. So that was what you were thinking!"

"Why, you…" Kagome chided and laughed, before chasing after him, their mingled laughter ringing into the night.

A gust of summer night breeze blew up again.

This time round, it still carried the nostalgic fragrance of smoky tobacco and the sensual scent of sandalwood on it, but unlike the scent on the wind three centuries ago, there was not a tinge of melancholy riding along the breeze.

_**The End.**_

* * *

A/N: Did you guys like it? This story is fast-becoming one of my all time favorites. It captured my heart, my soul and my interest, and somehow I find myself thinking about it, lost in the flowery transient world the Tayus of Yoshiwara lived in so long ago. Just to let those of you who listen to Chinese pop music know, this entire story was inspired by Jay Chou's "Qing Hua Ci" (Literally, "Green Flower Porcelain") while I was listening to it, riding on the bus.

It is the last installment already, so please review and reward my efforts!


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